Pages

Can I help you find something??

14 January 2014

Fast Diet - Week 12 - #LoseDayTuesday

Kicking off week 12 of the 5:2 Fast Diet!! To find out more about it, read my original posthere.

This week was a much easier week, for one, I could breath in and out of my nose, so that was a nice change! And also, I just really wanted to get some good weight-loss results this week. I have a big birthday looming, and so I would like to still be a little closer to my goal than I currently am. I Fasted on Monday and Thursday this week and I think it made a big difference to my intake over the week. Spreading the Fast Days out a little more than Monday and Wednesday seemed to have kept me better behaved in general!

I'm going to keep today's post nice and short because I think i've been babbling on a bit too much in recent posts! So, onto the food!

Lunch - Chorizo & Butterbean soup

I just can't help it. This soup is so good. Have you tried it yet? Fast Diet aside, it really is so good! From Lavender & Lovage.

Dinner - Scrawny Shepherds Pie

I know that "low calorie" and "pie" don't often go hand in hand, but I decided to make it so. I used lean lamb, low calorie vegetables and not a potato in sight (which is a bit of shame I must admit!). It was very filling, the flavour was fantastic, fantastic enough that I could even overlook the fact that the topping was crunchy instead of soft and fluffy!

2. Add the courgette, peas and tomatoes (both chopped and puree) and cook slowly for half an hour until the sauce has reduced and is nice and thick.

3. Divide the meat among 4 ramekin dishes and allow to cool. (I made three ramekins and 8 baby meals out of the meat instead, gotta make batch-cooking work for me!).

4. Lightly cook the courgette until it starts to brown and crisp up. Then place on top of each ramekin.

5. Bake for 20 minutes until the courgette is crunchy and the meat fully heated.

Snacks - Green olives

I have been craving salt this past week, which was a nice change from my more recent sugar cravings! I can't get enough salty green olives, but cut myself off at 10 for this fast day! Calories = 40 calories.

Drinks - Mint & Cucumber water

This week I tried a few different ways to get some more fluids into me other than just plain water.

The freshness of the mint and the G&Tness of the cucumber makes this water the most filling glass of H20 you can imagine. Too much of a stretch? Yeah, I know. But, when you can only drink glass after glass after glass of plain water, to have a variation in flavour is such a welcomed change that I thought it was worth sharing!!

Total calories for the day = 475

Exercise

Finally I beat my nasty cold so I could actually get back into a bit of exercise this week. I did my Reformer Pilates class and one hilly fast-paced walk. I was the only one in my Reformer Pilates class which was both good and bad. Good because I got a personal training session and technique fine-tuning, but bad because there was nowhere to hide and I am still aching in all kinds of places from the brutal workout!!!

Each week when it comes time to do planks, I always always go from my knees. I have a weak lower back and have always had that as my reason for not trying to go on my feet. But, I decided that by my 30th birthday, I need to be able to hold a full plank for 90 seconds. Quite neatly, that worked out to being 30 days, so it is my "30 to 30 Plank Challenge". With 27 days to go, I am up to 20 seconds, only 70 to go!! I'll be Instagramming my progress over the month (and if you know some good tips or techniques tweaks I'd love the advice!!) and hopefully I'll be able to achieve my little "Everest" by the time I clock 30!

Weight loss?

Total loss to date = 3.0kg (6.6lbs)

Okay so not a huge move this week, but lost the Christmas bulge, so that's a good start! Now, to push through this 3kg mark, hoping to reach 4kg by the end of the month!!

Goals for the coming week

My goals for this coming week are:

Exercise 3 times this week

Reduce dairy this week

Continue my 30 to 30 Plank Challenge

Brush my teeth during the day to prevent unnecessary snacking!

Wishing you a great week and I hope you're having some good results on the Fast Diet!!

Psst!! If you are looking for a little more meg-made, I'd LOVE for you to follow along!

10 comments:

Meg, when you do a plank you need to support yourself on forearms, you are not protecting your back doing it with fully extended arms. I speak from experience, I have a chronic disc bulge and a personal trainer who advises and knows his stuff!

Thank you so much Lorraine, I really appreciate your advice! I will give it a go from my forearms and see how that goes for my back. I couldn't decide which form to take, but will definitely take your advice and hopefully it will better protect my back. Are you able to plank for long with your back issues?? xx

I still can't do a plank for very long with straight legs, I just "listen" to my back and am much happier on my knees....can hold it for 1 min intervals x4!!Remember to keep everything in alignment and not stick your bottom up!ps, I am from the UK but live in Sydney and before Sydney we were in Brisbane, I love your blog and enjoy all your food posts

Congratulations on your progress Meg. I also do Mondays and Thursdays and for me that's the best spread - one day in between isn't enough. I found that my old dog-walking skirt is falling off me today!

I am giving Monday & Thursday a go again this week and gosh, its so much better! I thought "getting it over with" early in the week was the solution for me, but I realise that that was the totally wrong attitude! Yay for shrinking Melissa, that's awesome!!!! xx

Wonderful progress Meg! I love doing my plank but I just read Lorraine's advice and will heed. I wondered why when my personal trainer showed me how to plank why she showed me on my forearms. I just assumed she thought I was a weakling and was going gentle on me. I never thought to ask.

Thanks Jennifer, slowly but surely things are happening!! I don't see any changes day to day, but the numbers keep moving so thats good. Yeah it was my trainer too that showed me how to do it, but I'm going to get my cousin to weigh in on technique... she's a body movement physic guru, so will get her to help me with my form and report back! I hope you're having a great week!! xx